Mourners test Iraqi police

Tape denies Hussein role in cleric's bomb death

NAJAF, Iraq — Hundreds of thousands of angry and grief-stricken Iraqis are converging on this holy city Tuesday to bury a revered religious leader in what also is likely to become a major test for the new Iraqi police force.

As the mourners traveled, Iraq's U.S.-appointed Governing Council on Monday named a 25-member Cabinet, while a new audiotape purportedly from Saddam Hussein denied involvement in Friday's bombing in Najaf that killed at least 90 people, including Shiite leader Ayatollah Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim.

The burial of al-Hakim in a city cemetery caps a tumultuous four days that have shaken the fragile alliance between the U.S.-led coalition and Iraq's powerful Shiite community.

The assassination has raised calls among Iraqis for the United States to turn over more responsibility for security to local officials.

Members of the Iraqi Governing Council have said repeatedly that the roughly 37,000-member Iraqi police force--along with the fledgling Iraqi civil defense force--is ready to assume greater law-enforcement responsibilities.

Adding to the chorus was Iraq's most prominent religious leader, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, who said in a letter made public Saturday: "We blame the occupation forces for what is going on in Iraq. There is a lack of security. There is a lot of crime."

Sistani urged a strengthening of the Iraqi police so that they "can provide security and stability."

U.S. officials generally agree that Iraqi law enforcement needs to take a greater role in policing the country while the coalition retains control of overall security. But some U.S. military officials who work closely with the Iraqi police say they are timid and ill-prepared to battle hardened criminals and guerrillas.

Others say the police lack the respect of civilians because they often are associated with the previous regime.

Bernard Kerik, a senior coalition adviser to the Iraqi Interior Ministry, said Monday that the recent car bombings that have killed more than 130 people have encouraged the Iraqi police to be more assertive.

"What I've noticed is that this has almost emboldened them," Kerik said. "This has enraged them."

But the challenge facing the Iraqi police Tuesday in this sprawling city of 900,000 people is enormous as the throngs of faithful gather in an outpouring of ritual grief.

Al-Hakim, 64, had just delivered a sermon Friday at the Imam Ali mosque in Najaf and was leaving when a powerful car bomb exploded next to him and hundreds of worshipers.

Iraqi and U.S. officials say at least eight men have been detained in the bombing, including two with possible links to Al Qaeda.

Theory on bombers

One law-enforcement source said Monday that Iraqi police, who is are leading the investigation but have requested FBI assistance, had "reasonable grounds" for believing that some of the suspects are part of a terrorist network in Najaf.

While sounding a note of caution, the source said Iraqi officials have "retrieved CDs, documents and have Internet traffic that they say ties them to Al Qaeda."

But U.S. military officials said Monday there is no evidence that the two men detained by them participated in the bombing. They are likely to be released soon.

As investigators sift through the evidence, a massive crowd continued the three-day funeral procession from Baghdad to Najaf for Tuesday's burial.

On Monday, the procession led by a large flatbed truck carrying a symbolic coffin of al-Hakim left Karbala in the morning and made its way to Hilla, a strong base of support for assassinated cleric.

There, mourners riding atop a fire truck, tanker truck, vans and buses, along with throngs of pedestrians, paraded though the city carrying photographs of al-Hakim and shouting religious slogans and other chants tinged with anti-Americanism. Women in long back chadors slapped their heads in ritual beating while men pounded their chests in unison.

Procession arrives Tuesday

The procession ended the day in Kufa, about 6 miles north of Najaf, and was expected to enter Najaf on Tuesday morning, officials said.

Security in the region is tight. The main bridge linking Kufa to Najaf was closed Monday, and Iraqi police set up dozens of checkpoints to inspect cars and identification documents.

Both the funeral procession and checkpoints in Najaf were guarded by gun-toting members of the Badr Brigade, a Shiite militia loyal to al-Hakim that has appeared increasingly assertive in recent days.

Early Monday, brigade members surrounded the home of a Hussein loyalist in Najaf and opened fire with assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades. Witnesses said the battle lasted four hours and left four dead, including two brigade members.

The fighters took the Hussein loyalist away, witnesses said.

With tension running high, U.S. military officials met with local leaders to discuss security for Tuesday.